Secret Society of Short Shorts

Mike & I have noticed a disturbing trend in our neighborhood: men in short shorts. At first it was just the neighbor across the street, mowing his lawn in teeny tiny cutoffs. Then it was the neighbor next door to that neighbor, also mowing his lawn in little Daisy Dukes. On another occasion a third, unidentified man walked down the sidewalk in front of our house, just taking a casual stroll. In short shorts.

We must ask ourselves, have we moved into an enclave of the Secret Society of Short Shorts? Or have we stumbled upon a fashion forward neighborhood so forward that even Heatherette has not yet caught the wave of man thigh mania?

I Saved Us From a Tornado

Peonies are my stepmom's favorite flower, and it's easy to see why. They're big, exuberant flowers with a messy beauty and an intoxicating scent. The neighbors who back up to us have peonies all along the length of chain link fence that separates our yards, and I have been compelled to clip a few - just the ones leaning temptingly over in two-foot shoots, some bending almost to the ground. This bouquet on the dining room table fills the whole house with its sweet, heady fragrance.

The past couple of weeks have been a bit stressful as it's been rainy almost every day or night, and Mike doesn't have work when it rains, or even when the ground's gotten soaked. I remember June being a rainy month when I was a kid, or at least it seemed that way. We'd usually get out of school shortly after Memorial Day, and just as we achieved freedom, a streak of gloomy rainy days would begin and last until my birthday at the end of the month. It was only as an adult that I recognized that dusty, thick smell of impending rainfall as a weather-related phenomenon - when I was a kid I always thought it was the smell of dust on the window sills, since that's where my nose would be planted as I stared out in hopes of a glimpse of sun.

Saturday night we went to bed without knowing that a storm was coming. We fell asleep with the windows closed and the air conditioning on, but at about two thirty in the morning I woke to a rather faint sound of a siren. I tried to rouse Mike: "Is that the tornado siren?" He said calmly, "No, no...." I prodded him, "I think it is." He replied confidently, "No, it's just... part of the promotion." "Hon," I told him, "I think you're dreaming." He claimed he wasn't, but the siren pealed again and I got out of bed - "Okay, that IS definitely a siren." Finally he woke up and realized what was going on.

I scrambled in the dark to put on sweatpants and a hoodie since it would be cold in the basement, and the three of us - dog included - went down to the half bath (aka Man Cave) underground, grabbing a boombox on the way down. Mike had to briefly resurface to grab a flashlight from the kitchen and reported that it was "crazy" outside. We sat down in the bathroom - me in a collapsible camping chair, Mike & Russell on the floor - and listened to AM radio. The storm and possible tornado was moving right through Central Omaha. Power was out in parts of the city, but not for us. Safe in the basement, I worried slightly about our cars, which we only put in the garage if we know there's a storm coming, and we hadn't... mine in particular was sitting directly under the large maple tree in our front yard.

The tornado warning ended at three a.m. and we went back to bed under calm skies. In the morning, despite some downed trees and a few cases of property damage in the city, our neighborhood appeared unscathed. Even my spindly tomato plants made it through intact.

On the local news last night they said that a lot of people slept through the siren and that it's really only meant to alert people who are outside at the time of a tornado. Who knew? They don't give you an instruction manual when you move to tornado alley. Apparently we're all supposed to buy emergency weather alert radios. The funny thing is I had always worried about sleeping through a tornado siren and Mike swore he would definitely wake up if he went off... yet he was the one who thought it was "just part of the promotion," haha. And I, normally a corpselike sleeper, saved our lives. That's right... he owes me bigtime.

Housewarming

This little vase is a gift that was sent to us by Jenn, who is my oldest friend... we first met in the first grade, stuck together when the leader of our sixth grade clique dumped us, and have managed to stay friends for over 20 years. It is rare for two people to continue to share common interests for so long like we do, so her friendship is very special to me. We were lucky enough to reconnect in Boston a few years ago and spend time together after not seeing each other for a while after college. Jenn is still as unique and creative and funny as ever, and she always sends me the cutest little things, handmade cards and knitted items. She's getting married this summer and Mike and I can't wait to come celebrate with her and her husband to be.

We also received a package this week from my mom and sister with more housewarming gifts, woo hoo! Leave it to mom to take note of our colors from the photos we sent... everything she gave us goes so perfectly in the house. Above is a beautiful handprinted cotton tablecloth and set of napkins - in need of a little ironing but I was eager to display them right away.

Mom & Leah also sent this little plaque that I hung over our console table/bookcase by the front door, where we stash our keys and ipods. Two tin bluebirds perch over the words Home Sweet Home written in wire. Very cute and one of a kind... they also sent us a collapsible in blue with brown butterflies that I put in our master bedroom.

Last week we were waiting with bated breath for our economic stimulus payment, but it didn't come. I suppose because we owe some back taxes (oops). The government made a mistake on that one, because we were ready to do some serious stimulating. We were hoping to buy a washer and dryer and end the hellish routine of trudging to the laundromat every weekend. As it happened, though, a coworker of Mike's was looking to sell a practically-new set for $375, and we picked it up last night. This has been a crash course in DIY for us - really for Mike, since he's doing all the work - involving rewiring the plug and blah de blah. But it looks like by day's end we will have a functioning washer and dryer in our house. In the actual house. Here. In the house. If I ever complain about having to walk down a set of stairs to do a wash, please slap me.

Also this weekend I supported our local Benson Farmer's Market. They tried to get it started last year but there wasn't enough interest. As much as I love the Farmer's Market downtown, I'm keen on helping revive Benson so I swung by. There were only five stands and one was from the health food store, but I picked up two tomato plants, some green onions, and rhubarb. I also have two basil plants (doing okay) and a small dwarf rosebush - all still indoors. I want to start a small garden in the backyard where the previous owners had a swingset (now a square patch of mulch in the lawn) but am spacing out my purchases... I still need topsoil, fertilizer, and a set of basic gardening tools. I have a black thumb and have never been successful with plants, that won't stop me from trying. I'm bound and determined to raise some veggies.

Shrimp for two.

Like this bouquet of hydrangeas? I hope so, because we spent $15 on it while laughing in the face of a nationwide recession. Haha! Now that we're official lifetime residents of Benson we're supporting local businesses whenever possible, which this weekend included these flowers and a half dozen dinner rolls at a new bakery that just opened on Maple Street called Sweet Georgine's. And really, thems are some pretty hydrangeas.

Mike and I had a little cocktail party to go to hosted by someone who worked with me in faux finishing but is leaving the business. You can be sure you enjoyed a party when all your laughing muscles hurt by the time you leave. We made our exit around 8 pm and were famished, but didn't know where/what to eat, so we just headed downtown. By the time we found a parking space we were starving and it was raining hard, so we literally dashed across the street to the nearest restaurant, which happened to be Vincenzo's in the Old Market.

Apparently it was prom night, because half the tables were taken by young ladies and gents in formal wear, which of course prompted much reminiscing about high school and how lame our proms were etc. Mike ordered Shrimp Scampi with angel hair and I ordered the Shrimp Trittata with bow tie pasta. I never prepare seafood at home but it's often an indulgence for when we eat out and have limited vegetarian options (or particularly appealing seafood options). We were served warm rolls (fine, not great) and house salads (ditto). I thought the pasta and sauce were fairly good, but the shrimp was quite tough and had very little flavor. Overall it was a pleasant enough meal but I don't think it will make the list for a return trip... there are far too many other restaurants we'd like to try before we'd even think about going back to Vincenzo's I'm afraid.

When we got home Mike brought out our high school yearbooks and we played a little game called "guess which people were my friends." Mike did pretty well. I badly misjudged the girls in his class - all the girls I picked as the pretty, popular ones were actually outcast, cigarette-puffing headbangers who hung out by the auto shop. I say he missed out, lucky for me perhaps.

The Master Bedroom

Unfortunately we have no photos of our bedroom before its makeover. The listing didn't show it and I never took any because it was so unremarkable - duh, all the more reason to capture it for contrast's sake. The master bedroom, as I like to call it, is the entire top "half" floor of the house. It is a dormer ceiling but high enough for Mike to walk comfortably at six foot two. Right in the center is a low but roomy closet that bisects the room into sleeping area and dressing area (the latter could be used as a nursery someday).

Before, the walls and ceiling were flat white and the wooden floor had been painted a matte brown that was not terribly attractive. I knew immediately that I wanted to paint the floor in a high gloss white urethane paint, and Mike & I agreed on blue walls. The green-blue trim was Mike's creative idea that I think looks very nice. The results:




The bedroom perfectly embodies the peaceful quality that I wanted up there. It feels clean and quiet and soothing. Shown above is the one area rug we've bought so far and that our dog has of course fallen in love with. Hairy black dog, white rug, makes sense, right?

One small oddity: this post at the foot of the bed. The inspector said that it's the exhaust chimney coming up from the furnace. It's a bit weird looking but ergonomically not a huge problem. We still fit our king sized bed easily in the space. This is the first time since buying a king that we've had a frame for it, and wow the difference in comfort is amazing. Who knew (everyone but us). The bed, rug, night tables (not visible) and dressers below are all from Ikea.

Our dressing area on the other side of the closet. Could use another area rug. The dressers are cute and roomy for their size, but mine is all screwed up... the bottom drawers don't slide in and out so well which is kind of an important quality in a dresser.

Russell approves.

Living Room Before & After

Living Room Before: The walls were painted a pale beigey gray, with the wall facing the door being the dreaded accent wall in a dark taupey gray. The main sofa, just barely pictured, faced the front door and front windows, which we felt was a bit of an odd arrangement.

Living Room After: We painted all walls a greeny blue, which makes the natural woodwork and floors pop nicely. (Oops, please ignore the stack of plastic bins in the dining room there.) The TV setup is temporary until we get furniture in the family room downstairs. The TV will then reside downstairs and this room will be a sunny, electronics-free sitting room where we can read and entertain.

The hallway going up the stairs is painted in the same blue, which transitions nicely into our paler blue master bedroom. The sofa here is a piece we bought when we first moved to Omaha, at Nebraska Furniture Mart, at a significant discount because it's an incomplete sectional. We think it just looks like a groovy asymmetrical sofa (and the right end is finished so doesn't need to be hidden by a wall).

Dining Room & Kitchen Before & After

Dining Room Before: In the photo this room looks sunny and cute, but IRL the yellow had an icky orange tinge that was a little stale Velveeta. Plus, yellow just didn't really go with my plans.


Dining Room After: Green! These two photos show pretty well how the color changes in different lights. At times it's yellowy green and springlike, and in some lights it's quite cool and minty.

Kitchen Before: This photo is deceptive, as it makes the kitchen appear light and expansive... but what you see here is just the cabinets and backsplash. The wall color was deep red, and overall the kitchen looked small and dark. Also, the cabinets look pale yellow here, but the "after" photo below is more accurate in showing their hue.

Kitchen After: I painted the walls and backsplash but left the cabinets for now. I want to paint them a warm off white, but this weird peachy yellow will do for now... we are getting anxious to just move in and start living there! So we've got a little green and red thing going on with the red tile counters.

This past Sunday Mike and I had a successful mission to the Twin Cities Ikea. A few hours into the trip we realized we were a little off our rockers for driving 5.5 hours each way for an hour's worth of shopping, but how else can you get a king sized bed, two dressers, two nightstands, and assorted accessories all for less than $600? Well worth it. We've already assembled the dressers and bed and we're so ready to move. Photos of the master bedroom, living room, etc., will follow as we get the furniture in place.

Lastly, I would like to draw your attention to the updated Bad Vanity Plates List, as I spotted TWELVE awesome plates today alone. I almost crashed the car at least that many times.